i have not been to a meeting in year/half... that new device does ''sound'' good.. and the price is not bad.... but to pay 5$ month on top of meetings i would not purchase one.. i get the same thing with the fitbit and coach nicole was promoting.. and hook up is free.. i purchased mine days before she had blogged about fitbit ultra.. i am not cheap... but paying for sparkcoach and online WW is enough to shell out monthly.

First let me begin with Hi Pookielou, it seems like forever that we've heard from you. How are you doing? We really do miss you.

Nancy, I've been hearing about this device all day on here and our WW message board. Hope to have you post with us, you'll see the most activity at the first sticky topic. Now you have $42 to buy summer fruits and enjoy them too.

Hello co-leader Heidi, I'm waving, that has to count for something, lol

I agree! I do think it's forward thinking to now consider how much a person sleeps, because sleep deprivation can cause weight stall or even gain. However, why does WW need it exactly? Like you said, another gimmick, or even money making item. They see everyone else jumping on them and thought they'd get their feet in there too. I think they could misinform too, because someone could literally sit on their butt all day long and just move their arms, and the device would calculate it as movement. That being said, I would like one myself to see how my daily activity matches what the metabolic testing said I likely get. I'm honest with my movement. I wont even wear a pedometer in the house, because it can calculate a shuffle of feet and give false readings. All of these are just another tool, we know the real tool is our healthy eating and personal activity. We may fool everyone else, but if we dont adhere to the plan, we wont lose. Cant fool ourselves!

The device is similar to Bodymediafit's Bodybugg and Fitbit. The difference with those devices is although they calculate your burn during the day (Fitbit even tracks your sleeping patterns), they aren't designed to allow you to "eat" the activity. They're a useful tool that can show you how much you're moving/burning in a day, but I have never thought they were a good idea for WW. Everyone is branding these devices now. There's a Biggest loser branded one, for example. I think this is a gimmick for WW and won't last long. I wish they would put effort into making useful products for members.

Hi Nancy, Last week I went for metabolic testing, and a class to discuss the results. In the class, they mentioned the technology coming available, and it sounded exactly like what you described. I know they dont have WW here for English speaking people (Germany), so I'm positive it isn't just available for WW. Yes, every movement adds up, but I'm with you on the "talking with hands" part. When I wear my pedometer, I can shuffle my foot and it measures it as a step. We could sit at the pc ALL day and just randomly wave out arms and look like we racked up 10 AP that day! I think you need to do what works for you, and at some point trust your own knowledge and go with it. Good luck! If you feel like venting, come on over to the main thread, Weigh in support, it's where we all hang out. ~Heidi

I was on vacation and went to a WW meeting in a different town where they are being used as a test market for a new WW device that clips onto your clothing and records every single movement you make - swimming (it's waterproof), walking, jumping, twisting, scratching your leg, waving your arms while talking, everything! The leader was so excited by this thing....but I was not, for several reasons.

First of all it costs $39.95 just for the device, then $5 per month to keep it activated. (It can plug into your computer and link itself to your e-tools so you can see all these reports of your activity)...but, and here's where my radar went up...if you are suddenly earning activity points for talking with your hands, are you entitled to start "eating" those points? Do they become extras? The members did not seem thrilled by the idea of shelling out more money for this gadget so the leader kept pushing the idea of how they were a test market and this was so wonderful, blah blah...I think it's a way to get people to pay more money so they can lose less weight. I know if I thought I was earning extra activity points per day, I'd want to use them for extra food. But seriously, can scratching my arm really earn me activity points? According to this leader, all the movement adds up....so sure, why not? (really?!?)

Anyway, that was the icing on the cake for me. I had rejoined WW, done Simply Filling and lost and re-gained the same two pounds for 4 months....all while paying $42 per month and learning nothing I don't already know. Last night I cancelled my membership. Today, I'm going to take what I have learned from the various WW programs over the years along with basic common sense and start over.

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